The Wolf, A Fox's Cousin!
by whitewolf1123
Summary: Naruto's seemingly empty head is filled with the memories of how he met a ninja named Natsuki. Their journey leads them to the realization that they are more alike and closer than they had thought. What will happen if he can't save her from an old enemy?
1. Bad Dog!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do however own Natsuki and the ninja with her.

Naruto.

Chapter 1. Bad Dog!

"This is such a boring mission! I don't wanna do it!" Naruto complained. He stood with Sakura and Shikamaru in Tsunade's office.

"You'll do what mission I tell you to do," Tsunade replied.

"But, Grandma..."

"Naruto, knock it off!" Sakura hit him on the back of the head then turned to Tsunade and bowed. "We promise we wont fail, Lady Tsunade!"

"Right," Tsunade nodded. "Shikamaru, I'm putting you in charge."

He sighed, "What a drag." The trio left and as usual Naruto threw a tantrum.

"This mission is stupid!" He whined.

"It's an easy mission, all we have to do is deliver a dog to it's owner. Now shut up!" Sakura bobbed him on the head again.

"Oww!" He rubbed his already huge bump. The group walked outside and headed to the home they were picking up the dog at.

Shikamaru knocked on the door. After a long pause, it finally creaked open. A large German shepherd leapt from the doorway and pounce on Naruto. Shikamaru had sidestepped the attack.

"Gaaah!" The dog barked and licked his face. "Ah! N-no! Bad doggie!! Ah!"

"Ginta, sit!" A girl called out. The dog obeyed, but instead of getting off of Naruto, he had sat right on his stomach. A little girl with braided pigtails and a blue dress on came out of the door. "Ginta!"

The dog whined and got off of Naruto, then sat next to him. He stared at Naruto who inched ever so slightly away, smiling awkwardly.

"Please, tell me that isn't the dog," Sakura said.

"Are you supposed to be ninja?" The girl asked.

"Yeah," Sakura said smiling to her. She knelt down to talk to the girl face-to-face. "We're here to take a dog to the next village."

The girl crossed her arms, "I know. That's Ginta," she pointed to the dog. "You'd better take good care of him!"

"We will."

"If I get to my new home before you, I'm not paying you!"

Naruto and Sakura jaw-dropped. Shikamaru put his hands in his pockets and sighed.

"Mayla, that is enough," an older woman came out behind the little girl. "Thank you so much for taking Ginta for us. Ignore my daughter, she's a little upset about being separated from her dog. Here's his leash. My husband is waiting, he'll have the money for you once you arrive. Have a safe journey." She handed Sakura the leash.

Sakura bowed, "Thank you. I'm sure we wont have any problems." The little girl 'hmphed' and went into the house. Her mother followed. Sakura threw the leash at Naruto. "Since the dog likes you so much, you get dog duty!"

"Bu-but...."

"No!" Sakura crossed her arms.

"Fine," Naruto attached the leash to Ginta's collar. Then the group headed out of the village. As they were leaving, three other shinobi were returning. Sakura and Naruto lit up like lamps when they saw the lead ninja. She had short white hair and gold eyes. She was tall and skinny due to a high metabolism. She wore tight black pants and a long sleeved black shirt .She had armor shin guards and hand guards. Two male ninja walked behind her. When she saw Naruto and Sakura, she smiled warmly.

"Hi, Natsuki!" Sakura waved to the woman.

"Hello, Sakura," she replied in a calm, beautiful voice. "Are you leaving on a mission?"

"Yeah," Naruto replied. "We have to bring this dog to another village. It's stupid." The dog was tugging at the leash.

"Naruto," Natsuki looked at him, "Every mission is important. Don't forget that." She placed her hand on his head and roughed his hair up. She laughed as he pulled away and tried to fix the mess with only one hand. She bent and pet the dog then stood back up while the dog lay at her feet. If it were a cat, he probably would have purred.

"What'd you do? I can't get him to stay still at all," Naruto exclaimed.

"Nothing. I just asked him to behave."

"We should really get going," Shikamaru said bored.

Natsuki smiled, "Since when did little Shi'ru ever want to do anything?"

"It's such a drag when you call me that..." Shikamaru leaned on a tree while Natsuki laughed.

"Natsuki, we should report in," The scary ninja with one eye and a cigaret said.

Natsuki nodded. "Be careful on your mission. You never know when enemies will arrive."

"Right!" Naruto and Sakura said.

"Hey, I should be home before dark. Will you?" Naruto asked Natsuki.

"I'm not sure. Lady Hokage may have another important mission for me," Natsuki replied.

"Oh. Well, see you later, then!"

They parted. Naruto thought about Natsuki for a while as they walked. She had come into his life so abruptly that he didn't know how to react to her. Like Naruto, she wasn't normal. She was part demon, a wolf, and she had saved his butt countless times. Even though he knew he didn't have a real family, he felt she was the closest thing he had to one. The day he met her was ten times better than the day he graduated and became a real shinobi.


	2. First Encounter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. However, I do own Natsuki and the three rogue ninja in this chapter.

Recap:

Naruto, Sakura, and Shikamaru were on a mission to deliver a German shepherd to the next town for a little girl with a temper. On their way out, they saw a friend, Natsuki. This leads Naruto, being dragged by the dog, into day-dreaming. His memories flood his mostly empty head.

Chapter 2. First Encounter!

Naruto was bored and without missions this day, so he went off on an aimless walk. He was completely spaced out. By the time he realized how far he'd gone, it was already dark. It wasn't until this point, that he noticed he had been followed.

"Why don't you come out and fight?!" Naruto yelled to the trees. Several kunai came flying out at him and he quickly deflected them with his own. "Alright, who's out there?"

A ninja jumped down to stand about ten feet away from Naruto. The bottom half of her face was covered by a mask. She had dark skin and black hair tied into a curly ponytail.

"Who the heck are you?"

She gave a shrug, "I'll be your captor today." She threw several shurikan at Naruto. Again, he easily deflected them, but he had missed one: a senbon. She had hidden it in the mass of larger tools. It hit Naruto in the arm and sunk deep into his flesh.

"Ngh!" Naruto reached for it and yanked it out. He didn't notice that something other than blood dripped from it's tip.

The girl raised an eyebrow, "Hm? That was supposed to take you down. It must be that demon of yours."

Naruto began to sway. His vision became blurred, but he could still stand.

"Oh? I guess it is working. Maybe one more dose of that will help," the woman charged him with a senbon in her hand. Naruto pulled out a kunai but he was seeing two people instead of one. He stumbled and fell.

Clang!

When Naruto looked up, he saw a white haired Shinobi standing in front of him. The senbon had fallen to the ground and the other woman had a kunai buried into her stomach.

"Where...the hell did you come from?" She chocked as blood dribbled down her mouth.

"To a dead person, it doesn't matter," she replied. She looked up abruptly then pushed the woman away, grabbed Naruto and jumped about three feet away.

A large man easily three times her size crashed into the ground with his fist. He stood up and walked to the unconscious ninja. He picked her up and slung her over his shoulder. He was huge, at least seven feet tall. He also wore a mask. He glared at Naruto's savior as she put him down against a tree. At this point, Naruto could not move.

A third rogue ninja hopped down and landed gracefully on his feet. He had long black hair that hung in his eyes and a serious psycho look completely with a scary smile. "Hahaha! If it isn't my old buddy Natsuki!" he laughed. "How have you been?"

She turned her head and spat, "What do you want, Katsu?"

"Oh," he pouted. "Is that how you say hi to an old friend?"

"No. You are no friend."

He shrugged, "Too bad. You should know what I want Natsuki. I'm here for the fox, I don't have time to play with wolves."

"You're right. If you don't hurry and leave, one of your toys may just die," Natsuki nodded to the woman who was bleeding out.

"Hm. You're right, we'll have to play another time. Bye-bye!" the wind blew and a dust cloud covered them. Then they were gone.

Natsuki turned to Naruto, "I knew watching you would be a serious pain in the ass." She moved to the senbon with the poison and picked it up. "You can't move, can you?" Naruto gritted his teeth, unable to talk. Natsuki examined the needle. She gasped, "This is...!"

Naruto fell on his side and yelped. He couldn't talk, but sure he could scream. The pain was immensely unbearable. Natsuki ran to him and he slipped into unconsciousness.


	3. Natsuki of the Night

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own Natsuki and the rogue ninja.

Recap: During a mission to bring a dog to the next village, Naruto see's Natsuki, a good friend. His memories of their first meeting flood his head. She had saved his life, but he didn't walk away unharmed. Due to an unknown poison, Naruto is badly injured. Will he get help in time?

Chapter 3. Natsuki of the Night

Naruto opened his eyes and tried sitting up, but this hurt. He got dizzy and almost threw up. He decided laying down would be a better idea. His body felt tired and he just didn't want to move. He was laying in a bed, but who's bed?

He remembered what happened last night. At least it felt like last night. That woman had saved him from rogue ninja. So where was he now?

The door creaked open. That woman walked in. Natsuki, Naruto remembered, was her name. She smiled. "So you're up, huh, brat?"

"I'm not a brat," Naruto had little energy so he spoke normally, instead of his insane yelling.

Natsuki laughed. "Yeah, okay. Listen to me, kid. Two nights ago, you were attacked."

'_Two nights ago_?' Naruto thought. "What happened to me?" Natsuki sat on a stool near the end of the bed.

"You were poisoned. This type of poison isn't supposed to be used on regular humans. It's called 'Demon Killer.' What it does to weak demons, is numbs their bodies instantly, then kills them within the hour. Stronger demons can stay alive one or two days, but for the majority of that time, they are paralyzed. Lucky for you, I keep the suppressant here."

"So, I'll be fine, right?"

She looked Naruto in the eyes, "No."

"Huh?" Naruto asked.

"I gave you the suppressant. Not the antidote. The suppressant will only put the poison on hold for maybe one more day. I had no choice but to bring you here instead of returning to Konoha. You would have been dead before I go there."

Naruto shifted in the bed. "Who are you? How do you know about Konoha?"

"Because I'm a ninja for Konoha. I'm Natsuki of the Night. You've never seen me around because that's my primary job: to keep hidden. Listen, we'll have plenty of time to talk later, but right now, we need to get back to the village. They have antidotes for the poison."

She stood and left the room. Naruto was dumbfounded. She returned soon after with a bowl of ramen. "Here eat this."

Naruto looked at the ramen and his stomach actually churned. "I don't want it."

"That's the poison talking. I know for a fact you jump at the thought of eating ramen. Here you go," She set the bowl down on a table and took a huge amount of it up in her chopsticks. Using her other hand, she grabbed Naruto's nose and lifted it, then shoved the food down his throat. He actually choked. She held her hand over his mouth until he swallowed.

He gasped for air when she let go, "Why the hell did you do that?!"

"You seem to have some energy back, that's good! Time for the next bite!" She smiled and reached for the bowl.

"No! I'll do it myself!" Naruto snatched the bowl and chopsticks away. He scarfed the food down in hopes that it would stay down.

"Now, rest a minute while I get ready to leave for," she stopped and looked out the window.

Naruto stared at her, "What..."

"Shh!" She continued to stare out the window. Then she turned to Naruto, "You do NOT move. No matter what." She walked out. Naruto glanced out the window and saw several ninja advancing toward the house. Then he saw Natsuki. She looked different. She had...ears...animal ears and a tail. No, it was two tails. Really bushy too. Within a minute the ten or more guys were down, blood covered the ground. They were dead. Natsuki walked toward one guy who was saying something to her. Bastard didn't die yet. She lifted her hand, her nails were like daggers, and ripped his throat out. She ran back to the house.

She slammed open the door to where Naruto was. The ears and tails were now gone. "Get out of bed, we're leaving!"

"What?"

"They found you, now get up!" Natsuki grabbed a bag as Naruto stumbled out of bed. He could barely stand. "This is gonna be a pain." She threw an assortment of weapons into the bag then bent down in front of Naruto.

Naruto stood there and stared.

"Get on! Fool, you can't walk. Now get on!" Naruto did as he was told, to tired to argue, and got on her back. She booked it out of the building.

She ran along the ground toward the village hidden in the leaves. Naruto couldn't help but wonder where those ears went so he started patting her head looking for them.

"What are you doing?" She asked annoyed.

"When you were fighting I thought I saw animal ears. And you had tails. I know I saw tails."

She laughed and said sarcastically, "Your skills of observation are astounding."

"Thanks! Hey wait...!"

She laughed again, "You saw right, kid. Why do you think I carry a suppressant for a poison that works only on demons?"

"I don't know. Just in case?" Naruto asked innocently.

"You're a dumb ass," she sighed.

"I am not!"

"I'm a demon, fool! I'm a wolf. That's why I got the nickname Natsuki of the Night. Pretty much all of my missions take place at night, because that's when wolf demons are strongest."

"Oh." _Weird_, Naruto thought. Then again, he had a nine-tailed fox living inside of him, so who was he to judge? "Well, I'm Naruto Uzumaki and I'm gonna be..."

"The next Hokage, yadda, yadda. I know."

"What? How do you know?"

"Haven't you ever felt like you were being watched all the time? Well you were. I was asked as a favor from the third Hokage to watch your ass. He knew people would be after your power and feared that once he died, you wouldn't be safe. After he passed, Tsunade called me and told me to continue. A lot of people care about you."

Naruto thought about that. He was being followed by this woman...creepy.

"Damn!" Natsuki cursed.

"What?"

"We're being followed. Oh crap!" A kunai with a paper bomb landed a foot in front of them. Natsuki quickly side stepped but the bomb went off and threw them back. Natsuki swung her body around and slammed face first into a tree. "Ngh!" She dropped Naruto on the ground and wiped away blood from her eye. She had a cut just over the left one.

"Haha! Nicely done!" the woman who had attacked Naruto jumped out of the trees. "Ooh, looks like that one hurt."

Natsuki cut continued to bleed into her eye. This created a blind spot because she had to keep that eye closed.

"Oh well. Let's have some fun!" With a gust of wind, the woman disappeared. Natsuki moved her feet apart and stood directly in front of Naruto.

Natsuki drew two kunai and braced herself. "If my assumption is right, this woman favors long distance combat. If anything gets past me, you'd better be ready," she directed to Naruto. She pulled a third kunai and tossed it into the ground in front of him. "I know you're weak, but you'll have to try."

Naruto picked it up. This sucked. Not being able to fight sucked.

They heard the woman laugh, but it sounded like it was all around them. Several kunai, shuriken, and senbon, flew from the trees at them. Natsuki was ready, but would she get them all even while half blind?


	4. Two Vs One andA Half?

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto. Do own Natsuki and Rogue ninja.

Recap: Naruto's life was saved by Natsuki, a demon shinobi of the leaf village. He found out he had been followed by her and secretly protected by her. After receiving treatment for a poison that only affects demons, they left for Konoha. A rogue ninja stopped their escape and injured Natsuki. Unable to see out of her left eye, Natsuki prepares for the long ranged attacks of the ninja. Will she deflect them, or will she get hit?

Chapter 4. Two Versus One and...A Half?

Natsuki did deflect most of the weapons. However, two senbon hit her left arm and a kunai embedded itself into her leg. She cursed and removed the weapons, throwing them to the ground. Natsuki's chakra swirled around her like the wind. Two white tails and wolf ears sprouted from her body.

"Too bad! I didn't hit you with the poisoned senbon." The rogue said.

Katsu appeared several yards in front of Natsuki, "Oh my, it seems you are injured."

"Yeah, shit happens," Natsuki said.

"Mia! Don't play with her, just kill her," Katsu called behind him.

The woman, apparently named Mia, jumped out and landed behind him, "But it's more fun this way."

"Don't waste time!" He slapped Mia in the face. "She'll kill you the second she has an opening!"

"Too right," Natsuki agreed.

"Oh, Natsuki," Katsu shrugged. "I tried to see you at home, but when I found so many of my men dead and you gone, I burnt your house to the ground."

"I already know that. I could smell the burning wood, stupid."

"Oh, right. I guess I forgot about that nose of yours. Being a monster must really come in handy now, huh?"

"If that's supposed to make me cry, you're wasting _my_ time."

"I wouldn't want to do that, what with the boy dying and all. How long does he have? Two, maybe three, hours?"

"Beats me. Like I care."

"You think I don't know you anymore, dear Natsuki? You do care. He's a comrade and your current job. Keep him alive and safe, right?"

"Katsu, if you're here to fight me, can we please get this over with?"

"No, I have other people to destroy. You are my favorite toy, Natsuki, but not the only one I have. I believe Mia and Fin are enough for you." The large man that had saved Mia sprang out of the woods like a beast and landed next to Mia. "Tah, tah for now, dear Natsuki." With that he left.

Naruto shakily stood up, using a tree for support.

"What are you doing, brat?" Natsuki asked.

"I'm not a brat! And I'm gonna fight!"

"No you are not," She pushed him back on the ground.

Mia waved her arm, "It doesn't matter if he fights or not. We'll kill you anyway, beast. Then we'll take the boy and kill him to get that power of his."

"So that's what this is about, huh?" The question was more to herself than anyone.

"Oh, I've said too much. Fin, kill her."

The large man nodded and charged at Natsuki with one fist behind him, ready to strike. Natsuki stood up straight and, well, just stood there.

"What are you doing?!" Naruto yelled at her.

"Shut up," she said. Her voice was different, though, almost evil. Fin was too close now and his fist moved swiftly towards Natsuki. As the blow landed, the wind from it circled the two ninja. Natsuki's arm was raised and Fin's fist was just touching her palm.

Natsuki cracked a smile, "Heh, heh." Her eyes were covered by a shadow. Then her fingers seemed to stretch and form claws. From her smile, you could see pearly fangs. She closed her hand over Fin's fist, her fingers not close to covering the entire thing. "Now, the fun begins." She squeezed her hand tight and the sound of cracking bones was soon followed by a blood curdling scream of pain.

Next Time on The Wolf, A Fox's Cousin!:

Natsuki severely wounds her enemy, but at what cost? Too much of her own blood has been spilled. She licks her lip, tasting the blood splattered over her face. Something is wrong and Naruto can feel it. Natsuki doesn't look like herself anymore. She lost it completely. Can Naruto stop her in time, or will he get mauled in her fit?


	5. A True Demon

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, I do own Natsuki and rogue ninja.

Recap: Katsu, Mia, and Fin found Naruto and Natsuki. Natsuki releases her power showing off her wolf ears and two tails. She is wounded due to smashing her face in a tree and Mia's long range attacks. Even with these injuries, she has no problem in crushing Fin's oversized fist in her one hand. Can she win, and at what price?

Chapter 5. A True Demon

Natsuki released Fin's awkwardly crushed hand and he fell to his knees screaming. Mia took a step back in shock, "How...?"

Natsuki stared coldly at Fin, "I'm warning you, human. Leave now and you can live, for a while."

"Get up, Fin!" Mia yelled at him. Fin grunted. "Now!" Fin stood and allowed his hand to hang limply at his side.

"Naruto," Natsuki said not turning to face him.

"Wha-what?" He asked.

"Get back." He immediately moved several feet away.

Fin charged again, using his other hand as a weapon this time. Natsuki swiftly jumped into the air and performed a spin kick. She hit him in the face and sent him flying into, and through, several trees. She quickly threw the kunai in her hand at Fin who grunted as it buried into his leg.

Natsuki wiped blood away from her eye and forehead. Naruto could see why. The bleeding had stopped and the cut had sewn back together. She licked the blood on her hand and gave that toothy smile again. It looked like her fangs actually got bigger, now hanging out of her closed mouth. _Creepy_, Naruto thought.

"Fin! Get the hell up!" Mia yelled at him. Bad idea. Natsuki snapped her head towards Mia. She smiled and ran for Mia. "Fin! Now!" Mia was nervous.

Natsuki moved her right arm, that clawed hand getting ready to strike. Then she struck! But it wasn't Mia she hit, no, it was Fin. He had managed to move in front of Mia just in time. Blood dripped from Natsuki's claw, then spurted out of Fins belly. It splattered over Natsuki and Fin fell to his knees. He gushed blood.

Natsuki licked her lips, tasting the blood of her enemy. Something in her eyes lit up, or maybe darkened. She breathed heavy.

Mia stepped back.

Natsuki tilted her head back, that same sick smile stretched across her face. Fangs glistened. Claws dripped red. She squinted her eyes and yelled. That yell, it wasn't human, it was more animal, more like a howl. Her face elongated and turned into a snout. That of a wolf's. Her fangs grew more and her eyes seemed to look more animal. Fur began to cover her face and body. Beautiful white fur. Her hands stretched out more to become not completely animal, but closer to animal than human. Her tails swished around excitedly as the transformation ended. She snapped her head down and growled at Mia. Her body hunched closer to the ground. She howled and then attacked.

Mia screamed at Fin to get up and he did. As Natsuki pounced he smacked her in the face and she flew off to the side. She landed on all fours and slid back a bit, then continued her charge as if she hadn't been hit.

Mia began to throw anything and everything in her panic. Fin stayed in front of her, swatting away the beast that was Natsuki.

Natsuki growled. She moved so fast that Fin, Mia, and Naruto lost sight of her. Fin's eyes widened as Natsuki reappeared. Her strong jaw was clasped on Fin's throat. Her claws were dug deep in his chest. Fin gasped, but it was over.

Natsuki tore open his throat and chest.

She jumped away and spit out the fleshy mess in her mouth. Fin's corpse fell to the ground.

Mia looked from the corpse to the beast. "A true demon, you're a true demon." Mia screamed, "I don't wanna be a rogue anymore! Why did I listen to that Katsu!"

Natsuki didn't wait for the waterworks. She went for the kill.

"No! Stop it!" Naruto yelled at her. He was too late.

Natsuki dove for Mia. Her clawed hand went through Mia's chest, and came out her back. Blood trickled down Mia's mouth. When Natsuki pulled her arm out, Mia coughed up more blood than anyone should. Of course, it splattered Natsuki. Mia fell over, dead.

It seemed Natsuki wasn't satisfied with that. She began to attack Mia's lifeless heap.

Naruto threw a rock at Natsuki, "Knock it off!"

Natsuki yelped as the rock hit her head and turned to growl at naruto.

"Oops, bad idea?"

She stalked over to Naruto flashing those fangs and growling.

"H-hold on now, Natsuki. I'm Naruto, remember? Naruto Uzumaki, the next Hokage, right?"

She got close enough to strike, then she raised her claw and attempted to strike him. Naruto cringed as her claw descended on him.

TO BE CONTINUED!!

Next time on The Wolf, A Fox's Cousin!: Naruto has seen a true demon, but what exactly does that mean? He's too clueless to figure it out. Can Natsuki answer his question, or will the beast take her over and end his life? Will Naruto make it back to the village in time to receive treatment for the poison raiding his body? You'll find out in Chapter 6.


	6. A Lesson in Demons

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, I own my characters.

Recap: Natsuki has lost control thanks to the taste of blood. She mercilessly killed her enemies in a beastly form. Naruto attempted to stop her but he failed. After he stupidly threw a rock at her, Natsuki began to attack him.

Chapter 6. A Lesson in Demons

Naruto flinched, but the strike never came. She had stopped inches away from his face. She whimpered and with her tails between her legs, she backed up on all fours a few steps. She laid down on the ground and sniffed. She whimpered again and, like a dog, nuzzled Naruto's hand.

Naruto was surprised. She wasn't human, yet she wasn't animal, and she was covered in blood. Still, she seemed to be currently harmless. Naruto lifted his hand and petted her head. She licked his hand. Then she writhed in pain. She howled, but the howl slowly turned into a human scream. The fur began to shed and disappear, her fangs and claws grew shorter until the were gone, and her snout turned back into a human face.

Finally, Natsuki lay on her back in all her human glory. "I'm sorry," was all she said.

Naruto thought a minute. "That was so cool!" He jumped up and started animatedly speaking, "You were all," he got serious and stood straight, "'Leave now and you may live.' Then you went all claw and fang. And they were all like 'argh!'" he mocked Fin's stance and movements, "Then you were all demony and furry and 'grrr, howl!'" he mocked the way Natsuki moved in that beast form. "Then you won! So cool!"

Natsuki just looked at him, "Weren't you afraid?"

"Sure. But you didn't attack me. So I'm not now," he smiled placing his hands behind his head.

"The only reason I didn't attack you is because you smell like a fox. A cousin to the wolf. If you had been anybody else, I would have killed you too."

"Good thing it was me then huh?"

"You-you're an idiot."

"Am not!"

Natsuki stood up. "Can you walk at all?"

"Yeah, I'm good," Naruto said with a goofy smile.

"You're breaking out in a sweat. Are you sure you're okay? Wait a minute. The poison."

"But you gave me that sur, sue, whatever! I should be okay, shouldn't I?"

"Try to use your chakra."

"Huh?"

"Just freaking do it!"

"Okay, okay!" He made a hand sign, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Nothing happened. "Wha-what?!"

***(Note to readers: Forgive me if you don't appreciate the English version of the ninjutsu. I've only read and seen Naruto in English, so I'm continuing English-like. I don't care if you hate me.)***

"I thought so. The poison is still active and gaining an advantage over you. You wont be walking for long. Unfortunately, due to wounds, I can't carry you. At least not in this form."

"Don't you go back into that beast thingy again!" Naruto waved his hands back and forth.

"Stupid, of course not!" Then she began to shift. Her body was covered in fur again. And instead of appearing half animal and half human, she looked like an actual animal. She was magnificent. Larger than your average wolf, she was almost the size of a horse. Her gold eyes stared intently at Naruto as she opened her mouth. Naruto saw all fang and took a step back. That wolf could bite more than his head off.

"Uh..uh..Nice doggy?"

With her mouth hanging lazily, Naruto heard her say, "Wolf, stupid. I'm not a pet." She closed her mouth.

Naruto jaw dropped, "Ah! You can talk?!"

Mouth opened again, she said, "Yes, fool. Get on my back. I'm much faster in this form."

Naruto hesitated.

"Hurry now! Or I could just lift you in my mouth like a newborn pup who can't walk."

Naruto smiled uneasily, "No, no. I'll get on." Natsuki got closer to the ground and Naruto climbed on her back.

"Hold on," she warned. Naruto griped her fur and she bolted. She was faster than a horse.

"So, you're a demon?" Naruto yelled to her. Air rushed by him which made it hard for even him to hear his own voice.

"Yes. I thought it was obvious."

"Yeah, yeah. What did that girl say? You were a real demon?"

"_True_ Demon."

"Right. So, what does that mean?"

"There are several types of creatures classified as 'demons.' All 'demons' are put into three groups: A, B, and C. Not original, but it get's the job done. Class C is demons with one form, those stuck permanently as they are born. For example, if a toad were immortal, it would be a Class C demon. It doesn't change: one form.

"Class B is composed of human/demon bodies. You are a Class B. There is a demon living inside of you and you are able to access it's power and use it. That sand boy is also a Class B. What was his name? Gaara? The one you used to be enemies with but aren't now. Also a Class B are half demons. Those who are sadly born of a human and demon parent. They're frowned upon within the demon ranks, but it does happen.

"Class A demons are considered most troublesome. They are most powerful, full blooded demons with the ability to change their form. What they can change into and how many forms they have all depend on the type of demon they are. The highest of Class A's are called True Demons. It's another way humans call us monsters."

"Oh." He didn't understand it but he didn't say anything. "So what are you?"

"A Class A."

"Ah! Got it! How many forms do you have?"

"Well, let's see. There is my human form, human with animal features, then there's this wolf form, and then there was the beast form. That form is where we get the name true demon. It is the form in which we are most monstrous. So I have four."

"Is that a lot? Compared to other demons, I mean."

"Well, I've known A Class's to only have two forms. I've known others to have ten or even more."

"Ten? They must be strong."

"Actually, no. There is a limit to even a demon's life and power. Demons of Class A are born with the knowledge of two forms: human and beast. Within early childhood, they are taught the forms of the clan, maybe two or three more. If a demon decides to continue to learn more forms, it may cost them their life. Creating a new form takes away too much chakra and demon life span. Even then, our bodies are limited."

"How's that?"

"I'm a wolf, so I can't just go off and grow scales to become a lizard or something. Same thing applies to other demons. Elemental demons can't change their elements, animal demons can't change their animal, etc. Get it?"

"Kinda."

She laughed, "You don't get it at all, do you?"

Naruto shrugged. He understood some of it but he was still lost.

***Note to readers!!!: i know this isn't finished yet, and you're probably like 'WTF?! finish this up already!' Sorry! Anyway, I'll be starting another fic, tonight actually. It'll be Naruto again, but this time it's set in modern day high school. I'm sure there a million fics like this but I just gotta try it out for myself. No jutsu and no ninja stuff...sniff, i know...how cruel of me. Anyway, since it's high school, there will be lots of students who are nameless just hanging around. I've already inserted characters for friends, so here is my offer. If you would like to be mentioned in this fic as another student, please e-mail me! I will be more than happy to insert you, if even only for a chapter or so. Here's a list of things i'll need from you:

Character name(two choices plz just in case!)/gender/appearance/slight personality description(bubbly,emo,sadistic,cheery,etc)/if you would like to be bff's with any particular naruto character or bf/gf of one(first come first serve guys)/any sort of sports or clubs you want to participate in/and anything else you feel is important. Remember:more info you give me, the more I have to work with and develop.

Contact me via e-mail or through this site by use of reviewing or whatever. Thanks for reading!***


	7. Dysfunctional Family

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

Recap: After almost tearing Naruto apart, Natsuki regains control of herself and gives Naruto a crash course in demon rankings. He doesn't quite understand the class's, but it doesn't bother him too much. Natsuki changes her form into that of a wolf and runs to the village carrying Naruto on her back.

Chapter 7. Dysfunctional Family

It took them two more hours to get back to the village. By that time, Naruto was breathing heavy and had too high a fever. Natsuki ran through the gates of Konoha and almost knocked a few ninja off their feet.

"Was that a wolf?" A skeptical male asked.

"I hope not," his friend answered.

She ran toward the medical center but stopped as a masked ninja reading a book walked out in front of her.

"Hm?" He looked at her, "Natsuki? Why the rush?"

"Kakashi, move! I gotta get this brat to a medic. He's one of your students so move!"

"Naruto?" He looked at the unconscious boy. "I'll come with you."

"Fine, but move!"

They had made their way into the hospital even though Natsuki was still a horse sized wolf. She quickly transformed back into human and handed Naruto off so he could be treated. She had no obligation to stay, but did so anyway.

"You are going to get checked out?" Kakashi asked her.

"No. I don't need to."

"There's an awful lot of blood on you."

"It's not mine."

"Torn clothes, too."

"When I'm in that form I heal, you know that."

"True."

A nurse walked out thirty minutes later, "Anyone here for Uzumaki, Naruto?"

Natsuki stood, "Yes."

"Are you his mother?" the nurse asked.

"I..."

"Yes she is," Kakashi said.

"And you are?"

"Her husband," if you could see his face he'd probably give a smile right now.

"Then you can both see him now, follow me."

"I'm a mom now, and you're my husband?!" Natsuki whispered to Kakashi.

"She probably wouldn't have let us see him if we weren't family," Kakashi whispered back.

They entered Naruto's room. He was sitting up stuffing his face with food, "Hey Kakashi-sensei!" he said through a mouth full of food.

"Hi, Naruto, how do you feel?"

"Great. Thanks a lot, Natsuki!"

"You're welcome, I'm glad to see you're all right. I guess I'll be leaving," she turned to walk out.

"Hey wait!" Naruto said. She came back into the room. "Why don't you stay a little bit?"

"Okay."

"I don't mean here, in this room. You could leave if you wanted to. What I mean is....would you like to move in with me? You know... 'cuz it's my fault your house got burned down and all....I feel bad!"

"Natsuki smiled, and then she laughed, "I would be grateful for that, Naruto. And it would make my job a lot easier! Protecting you is not a walk in the park, brat!"

"Ah, shut up!" He continued to stuff his face. Then shortly after, he fell asleep.

"So what happened exactly?" Kakashi asked Natsuki.

"Katsu happened."

"Him again? Did you kill him?"

"No, the bastard ran away and let his lackeys fight me."

"And with the amount of dried blood on your clothes, I'm assuming..."

"Correctly. I went into that form."

"And you didn't harm Naruto?"

"It was his smell that snapped me back. Maybe it'll be good for me to have him around."

"Maybe. Well I have a mission to go off and do, so I'm leaving. You should talk to the Hokage."

"Yeah, I will." They walked out together.

Naruto was discharged the next day. The doctors had said he should have been dead hours before they made it to the hospital. He was lucky.

Natsuki was waiting for him and they walked to his home together.

"This place is a mess..." Natsuki said. She opened the fridge, "You have curdled milk in here, too. That's disgusting."

"I don't drink it," Naruto defended himself.

"Then throw it away!"

The next weeks went along these lines. They would fight, scream, yell, occasionally throw things at each other. Then, right after, they would laugh. They had formed a family. A highly dysfunctional one, but a family nonetheless. Naruto even showed her off to his friends.


	8. Katsu Returns!

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto

Chapter 8. Katsu Returns

"Naruto. Naruto!" Shikamaru called out.

"Huh?" Naruto snapped back to reality.

"Let go of the dog's leash."

Naruto hadn't noticed they had arrived and were handing the monstrosity they called a dog over. The man took the leash from Naruto after handing Sakura the money. He bowed and said thank you.

"Ginta!" Mayla, the little girl who owns the dog, came running towards the house after the dog. The dog barked excitedly and licked her face. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!!" She yelled to the ninja.

Naruto gave her a thumbs up before they walked away.

"Mission complete!" Sakura cheered.

They only walked for about a half an hour when they saw a slumped figure standing in the path. Naruto couldn't see her face but she looked familiar.

"Are you okay?" Sakura asked.

"Don't go near her!" Shikamaru said.

"Huh? Why not?" Sakura asked him.

"Take a closer look." They did. Naruto did know her. Mia. Only this Mia was grotesque. Flies swarmed around the gaping hole in her chest. She was dead but she stood up.

"Agh!!!! Zombies!!! It's the frickin' zompacalypse!!!!!" Naruto screamed.

"No it isn't," Natsuki landed in front of Naruto and the others.

"Uh..hey," Naruto said.

"This is Katsu's work. He has the ability to pour his chakra into dead bodies and use them as tools in battle."

Katsu walked out from the trees, "Oh, and here I hoped I'd be able to play with Naruto. Oh well. It's always fun to play with you Natsuki."

"I suggest you kids run back to the village," Natsuki said.

"We are not kids!" Naruto yelled, "We're Shinobi and we can take care of ourselves."

"Don't back talk me, you brat! Just do it!"

"No!"

"Sorry to break up the mother/son argument here, but I've people to destroy," Katsu said as several more zombies came out of the woods and toward their group.

"Damn!" Natsuki was being attacked so instead of running after Katsu, she fought off zombies. Shikamaru and Sakura were also fighting these Zombies. They were not attacking Naruto and Katsu had run off.

Naruto began to go after him.

"Don't you dare! He's luring you to him!" Natsuki yelled.

"Yeah, that may be true, but we can't stop these zombies until we stop Katsu, right? So I gotta go stop Katsu," Naruto said as he started after him.

"Hey! Don't run after him, fool! Get back here! I'm warning you! I'll ground you for life, you brat! Naruto! Get back here!"

'I gotta get this guy!' Naruto thought. 'He hurt her so many times, I just gotta!' Natsuki had told Naruto about Katsu in the first few days she lived with him. Katsu used to be a shinobi for Konoha. Natsuki and him were engaged. Turned out he just wanted her powers to help him overturn the village. He needed her to take over. So when he attempted to annihilate the village and she refused to help, he struck her down. She thought that she loved him and in the end, was unable to kill him, or even hurt him. She almost died because of him and Naruto wouldn't let him get away with it.

Katsu was waiting for him in a small clearing. Naruto stopped.

"Well, Little Foz, you came out to play! This makes me happy!"

"I came to destroy you!"

"Why say such horrible things? We are practically family. You view Natsuki as a mom and well, I am her fiancé! We're like father and son now," he smiled.

"We are not! And you have nothing to do with her anymore! I won't let you get away this time!" Naruto used his demonic powers. "Now I'm gonna kill you!"

"Ooh, how exciting!"

Every time Naruto went to strike him, Katsu evaded. He kept dodging and didn't even fight back. It really pissed off Naruto.

~*~*~_"Katsu was the type of fighter who would purposefully enrage his opponent. He would use their rage to cripple them and take them out easily. He fought with his head, and never did his own dirty work."~*~*~_

Naruto remembered what Natsuki had told him. Katsu doesn't fight back, but why? Naruto knew there had to be a reason, but what was it? 'Think, Naruto, think! Okay, so he uses his chakra to use the dead.' Naruto saw out of the corner of his eye one zombie with a kunai in his hand near the trees.

Katsu didn't have any weapons. In fact, he didn't even have a spot to put any weapons. 'So he doesn't carry weapons, he doesn't fight. I really don't get this guy.'

TO BE CONTINUED!!

Next time on The Wolf, A Fox's Cousin: With help from Shikamaru, Naruto understands why Katsu wont attack. The answer may just sway Naruto into not wanting to take Katsu down. How will Naruto react to a hostage situation?


	9. Defeat!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

Recap: Naruto's mission is over and the dog is out of his hair. Too bad Katsu has returned to take out Naruto. Katsu is able to use his chakra to animate the bodies of the dead and Naruto seems to find himself in the Zompacalypse. For an unknown reason, Katsu does not attack.

Chapter 9. Defeat!

Naruto continued his enraged attack attempting to understand why Katsu will not fight back. He had to stay calm, though, because Katsu uses people's anger against them. Damn, it was hard to stay calm when your enemy just runs away.

"Naruto!" Shikamaru ran through the trees. "I figured it out! Katsu doesn't fight because he can't fight. He's paralyzed from the chest down! He uses his chakra to move, but can't use it to fight!"

"Oh my, he found me out," Katsu said as three zombies grabbed Shikamaru. One held a kunai to his throat and the other two held his arms away so he wouldn't perform any jutsu.

"What a drag," Shikamaru said.

"What to do now? I know, bring even more people to the party!" A zombie dragged an unconscious Sakura over. The zombie of Fin was carrying Natsuki. She was being squeezed by his massive arms and struggling to get free. Mia held a kunai to her throat.

"Damn!"

"No we can really have some fun! Oh? Where did you go? Huuh?" Naruto was behind him and kicked him square in the face. Katsu flailed like a flag in the wind as he fell and lay motionless for a minute. "Good kick. You made me lose my chakra control." He stood up again.

"Let them go!"

"I don't think so. See I have to kill them. And you, by the way, I have to kill you."

"Why?"

"I just don't like them anymore. They bore me."

"They aren't your toys!"

"I don't care what you think. You've no idea what it's like to fight for your village, become injured, than thrown out like trash. Just because I couldn't move anymore. Feh! Now I can move. And now I'll destroy you all! I'll get my revenge, I will!"

"You're nuts! For a minute I felt bad for you, then you ruined it!"

"Naruto, just kill him!" Natsuki yelled.

"He wouldn't dare to. Not with his friends and precious mommy in the line of fire."

"Good thing we aren't," Natsuki popped into a cloud of smoke. Fin was clutching a log. Shikamaru also popped and so too did Sakura. Logs replaced them. "Now, you can take him down, Naruto." The three came out behind Katsu.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" two clones appeared. One was used to create a ball of circulating air in Naruto's hand while the other began an attack. The real naruto charged while Katsu was busy dodging the clone. "Rasengan!" Naruto landed the blow in Katsu's chest. He flew back into a tree.

"Good job, Naruto," Shikamaru congratulated.

"I'm not done!" Katsu didn't stand, he couldn't stand.

"Yes you are," Natsuki pulled out a kunai and threw it. It embedded itself into Katsu's neck. The zombies colapsed around them and faded into dust. Natsuki turned to Naruto.

Naruto put his hands behind his head and smiled, "It was nothing!"

Natsuki walked up to him.

SLAP!

Naruto's head snapped to the left and he stared wide-eyed at the ground. then he looked at Natsuki and rubbed his cheek. Shikamaru and Sakura stood quietly.

"Don't you ever disobey me again! You could have been hurt! Or killed!" She grabbed Naruto and pulled him into her arms. She hugged him. "Don't scare me ever again!"

Naruto smiled, "Yeah, I'm sorry...mom." He half expected her to yell at him more.

"You're such a troublesome son," she said. This was what Naruto needed to hear, what he wanted. his family was seriously a messed up one. Then again, who's family wasn't?

The End.

~*~*~Thanks for reading guys! Give me some feedback if you've got the time. I had written this years ago, but it was about 50 pages longer so I cut it short. I hope taking out all that extra drama made it better. Oh well, I would have liked to keep the extra scenes with Mayla making fun of Naruto, but I sacrificed it. I hope you all liked it and thanks again!~*~*~


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